Once Upon a Time!

[kenzie00]

There was a great mountain in the middle of a vast lake. It was said in legends that atop the mountain in the lake was a treasure. What the treasure was, nobody knew. But in its legend it was said to be great! However, the legend also spoke of a great and terrifying guardian at the peak of the mountain. No one ever dared to go near the mountain in the lake, for they feared the guardian, and of the five deathly trials he makes adventurers face when trying to get the treasure.

So it came to pass that no one would know for sure what kind of treasure was up in the mountain, or what it was worth. Until one day a child appeared from the mists surrounding the great lake. It was but a very thirsty little girl who came to the lake to drink from its clear waters. She knew nothing of the legends of the mountain in the lake, but the guardian from atop his peak saw all who dared come. From his lair he eyed the little girl at the edge of his lake and grinned an evil grin!

"Oh ho! A human child!" He said with glee as he rubbed his hands together. "It has ever been so long since I've seen a challenger of my mountain." With a wicked laugh he raced down the mountain to meet the innocent child drinking from the lake. As she had her fill, she took from her knapsack a pouch and filled it with water for later. As she did so, she saw her reflection in the crystal waters of the lake. But was taken aback when the guardian of the mountain's face appeared over hers!

"So!" He bellowed. His eyes fixed on the girl. "You dare to take my challenge, eh girl!?" The guardian stood at the water's edge, his feet tapping beneath the water as the little girl, startled, but not scared, looked over the guardian of the treasure. She spoke softly, nervous of the creature. "Ch-Challenge? What challenge?" Asked the girl. This only made the creature's eyes bulge a bit out of his head before reeling back with laughter. Of all the time he has guarded this treasure, never had he heard such an absurd question! All humans, children and adults, who have come here have always been after one thing. She was no different, was she?

After the guardian finished laughing he took a deep breath and eyed the girl funny. "Don't play dumb with me girl! I know you're after my treasure! But if you want it, you must face my five mountain challenges!" The guardian said. The girl looked at the beast, confused. But then it hit her! From the back of her mind came the legend of the lake mountain, and all its details. She had no interest in such nonsense, in fact she didn't think it was real. But now here stands the guardian in the flesh, and the mountain's treasure did seem inviting. However the girl knew better, and tried to clear the misunderstanding. "I am sorry, but I have no interest in treasure or challenges. I was just on a nature hike." She explained. The guardian would not have it though. "Lies!" He yelled, before snapping his fingers and having the both of them appearing on the other side of the lake on the mountain. The guardian was a creature of magic after all, his appearance was not the only thing people feared about him.

Once on the other shore of the mountain, the little girl had decided that she has had enough of the guardian's attitude! She pulled out of her knapsack a large, comedic, mallet and flattened the guardian into a pancake before setting off up the mountain. The guardian would not be defeated easily though, for as she began her ascent the creature who was indeed flat as a pancake, began to regain his original form. The Five challenges of the Mountain would now begin for the little girl!

Will she survive!? Find out in the next installment!

[kenzie00]

PREVIOUSLY...

When we last left our unnamed heroine she was being forced to take part of the lake mountain's five challenges by the great magical guardian! The guardian you see guards the great magical treasure that is atop the mountain as foretold by the legends spread across the land. Our heroine did not mean to take the challenges or get the treasure, and was merely here by happenstance. Much so that she had no interest in the mountain, its guardian, or its treasure; but the guardian refused to believe her. So with a snap of his fingers he had cast a teleportation spell to bring himself and the girl to the base of his mountain! But the girl was clever and packed a large cartoon mallet, for which she used to flatten the magical beast into a teeny, tiny, smooshed pancake while she ran up the mountain!

Now the trials of the mountain begin for her, will she see survive them? Find out in this exciting installment of "Once Upon a Time!"

Our nameless heroine did indeed climb up the mountain in a fast pace. Never stopping to wonder what might the challenges of the mountain would be. She reached back and tapped her knapsack, and made note of that it was good and heavy. Stocked with tools and supplies that she had brought for her nature hike, which turned out to unexpectedly taking the mountain's challenges of death. As she continued at a hurried pace towards the peak she came across the first challenge or it so it seemed. A large wooded area, thick with trees and shrubs loomed before her. Its tall and close plant life casting a dark and eerie path through its woods. The guardian of the mountain, now in his full form, appeared next to the girl and startled her with a loud laugh. "Hahahaha! Welcome to the first challenge of the mountain!" He declared. With a puff of smoke he disappeared and reappeared before the girl. "In these woods is a dark and large maze. Its dead ends make one, well, dead! For they contain vicious beasts, venomous insects, and deathly traps!" The girl rolled her eyes at the beast. For he was boring. "As you will discover, making your way through the maze will be a matter of life or death! Only the true path leads safely in and out of the woods, and so if you steer off of the true path you will die a miserable death!" The beast's boastful laugh echoed as he disappeared in a puff of smoke. His final words to the girl echoed as well. "I will wait for you at the end, if you can make it that far!"

With a huff, the girl walked into the entrance of the maze woods. She didn't stray too far in, as she could easily see the entrance to it, the only path that had the sun lighting the end of the path. However instead of playing the beast's game, she decided to take a more direct approach at beating the maze of the woods. "Screw this!" she declared, tossing her knapsack to the ground and opening it up. She took from her knapsack a large hand air pump, a canister of helium, a sewing needle, twine, a large cotton sheet, and two large rubber balloons. With her materials out she set to work and sewed onto her pack four anchor points, then she sewed on long lines of twine into the corners of the cotton sheet. She plucked as hard as she could on the lines and points in an attempt to break them, but they were solid and sturdy! With a satisfied nod, the girl placed one of the two large balloons under the cotton sheet, and attached the air pump to its mouth. She then inserted the canister of helium into the pump and began to pump, pump, pump! Pump it up!

After a few minutes the balloon was large enough to begin floating off the ground, almost carrying the knapsack with it. But it wasn't nearly full enough to fly away yet. The girl tied a line of twine to the nearest tree and secured her knapsack before continuing to pump the balloon until it was ready to burst! With the added helium the balloon was lifting the knapsack off the ground, and would have floated away if it weren't for the tree anchor. The girl then got to work inflating the second balloon until it was the same size as the first, and there was now enough lift and strength for her to just fly over the maze woods. She gave herself a pat on the back before returning the pump, canister, and twine to her pack. Now she got out a large bellows, and some scissors before closing her pack tight. She climbed to the top of the cotton sheet covering the balloons, and snipped the tree anchor's line with the scissors before pocketing them.

Immediately she rose into the air! Brushing past the thick trees, their sticks and branches batting at the balloons, but thanks to the thick cotton sheet, couldn't poke them or tear them apart. The girl had to brace herself as she rose through the canopy of the forest, or else she might get whacked or bumped off the makeshift hot air balloon. Once she broke the canopy and was atop of the woods she took her bellows and blew in the direction that led deeper into the woods. A few hours later, her arms were tired, and she was weak from hunger, but she had to continue blowing and blowing until the maze woods were gone from underneath her. It seemed to stretch on forever, she thought the maze woods would never end. But there it was, the exit beneath her! With a joy, she took out her scissors and stabbed one of the balloons through the thick cotton sheet, and her ride began to descend from on high! Some time later she was safely on the ground, and began to pack up her stuff. As she landed, there was a very, very angry guardian awaiting her.

"CHILD!" He yelled very loudly. "What. Was. That!?" He of course referred to her use of a flying machine to get past the maze woods. The girl answered him smartly. "Well. You didn't say exactly what I couldn't do to get past the maze. You just told me to get past the maze!" This only made the guardian even more furious, because he just got outsmarted by a little girl! After tearing out some of his hair he calmed down and told the girl to hurry up and scamper up the mountain, for there were still four more challenges to be done with. In a violent puff of smoke the guardian disappeared and left the girl in peace for now.

The girl then pulled out of her knapsack some food and her pouch of water from before. She was very, very hungry and would need her strength for the second challenge.

WHAT IS THE SECOND CHALLENGE!? FIND OUT OUT NEXT TIME!

[FyreeTSG]

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